head to head · open source
react vs web-maker
react has 250,602 GitHub stars, 51,379 forks, 1,377 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. web-maker has 2,699 stars, 324 forks, 120 open issues and last shipped 2 months ago. react leads on adoption by 9,185% (250,602 vs 2,699 stars). react is written in JavaScript under MIT; web-maker is written in JavaScript under MIT. react has attracted 21% as many forks as stars, web-maker 12%. react was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| react | web-maker | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 251K | ★ 2.7K |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Written in | JavaScript | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-08-03 |
| Forks | ⑂ 51K | ⑂ 324 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick react if
- You weight community size — 251K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick web-maker if
- You want the web-maker feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and web-maker fits your workflow better
About react
React is a JavaScript library under the MIT licence for building user interfaces, using a declarative, component based model that renders both on the web and, through React Native, on mobile.
read the full react overview →
About web-maker
Web Maker is an MIT licensed, offline frontend code editor and playground for HTML, CSS and JavaScript experiments that runs entirely on the user's own system, and it is aimed at frontend developers who want CodePen style quick prototyping without a network connection.
read the full web-maker overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is react or web-maker more popular?
react has 250,602 GitHub stars and web-maker has 2,699. react has the larger community by that measure.
Are react and web-maker free?
Both are open source. react is licensed under MIT and web-maker under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between react and web-maker?
react is written in JavaScript and web-maker in JavaScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, react or web-maker?
Choose react if you want the larger community (250,602 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose web-maker if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.